Charlie Chaplin's 64th Film Released Sept. 29 1918
The Bond was a propaganda film created by Charlie Chaplin at his own expense for the Liberty Load Committee for theatrical release to help sell U.S. Liberty Bonds during World War I.
Made in 1918 with Edna Purviance, Albert Austin and Sydney Chaplin, the film has a distinctive visual motif set in a simple plain black set with starkly lit simple props and arrangements. The story is a series of sketches humorously illustrating various bonds like the bond of friendship and of marriage and, most important, the Liberty Bond, to K.O. the Kaiser which Charlie does literally.
There was also a British version with Uncle Sam replaced by John Bull and promotes War Bonds.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0008907/
Reviewer:olafg
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February 9, 2008 Subject:
Question
Does anyone have a better copy for the archive? This version is terribly dark and I'm sure I've seen better, but have been unable find any online.
Reviewer:dudeman5685
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favoritefavoritefavorite -
December 27, 2006 (edited)
Subject:
Been looking for this forever
With so much WW2 propaganda ingrained into our subconscious, it is easy to forget that there was a great deal of WW1 film propaganda done way before that, and helped to lay the basis for some of the later motifs. This little short is only barely about the war however. The first two skits are about the Tramp and his misadventures with a "friend" and love interest; but in the third, that evil Kaiser starts to menace lady liberty herself, only to be foiled by the brave American serviceman. This is followed by a hilarious little skit with Chaplain, Uncle Sam, and Industry incarnate. At the very end he whacks the Kaiser with a mallet.